CARBON MONOXIDE BLAMED IN ILLNESS OF THREE WORKERS

Three workers at a Cape Girardeau manufacturing plant were hospitalized in St. Louis Monday, probably from carbon monoxide poisoning.

A spokeswoman for St. Francis Medical Center said they were in stable condition.

The FRG Mechanical workers were operating a propane-powered forklift in a building at 99 S. Louisiana when they became ill, said battalion Chief Steve Niswonger.

A fourth employee at the building called the fire department and took the workers to St. Francis Medical Center.

Niswonger said tests at the site indicated carbon monoxide levels as high as 139 parts per million. Safety standards allow for 35 parts per million during an eight-hour shift.

FRG makes stands and brackets for Dana Corp.

St. Louis hospitals have hyperbaric chambers that supersaturate the bodies of victims of carbon monoxide poisoning with oxygen, forcing carbon monoxide from their bodies, said firefighter Travis Schubert.

Niswonger said people who get a severe headache in an enclosed space should step outside. The fire department conducts tests if carbon monoxide is suspected.